The present invention relates to a lighting fixture, which is arranged to receive two or more elongated light sources positioned one after another in the longitudinal direction of the light sources, the lighting fixture comprising one or more connecting devices, which are arranged to supply energy to the light sources in order to burn them and positioned in a region between the successive light sources in the lighting fixture, and a globe part and a background part, which are arranged to be connected to one another and to substantially surround the light sources and the connecting devices.
The interiors of public transport vehicles are typically illuminated by light lines, i.e. light fixtures with a length of the passenger cabin. The purpose of light lines is to provide an even lighting over the entire distance of the line so that the light line would not have shadows or significant deviations in the intensity of lighting it provides. Conventional light lines are implemented by mounting a continuous lighting fixture on the roof of the passenger cabin, whereby fluorescent lamps positioned one after another act as a light source. Using fluorescent lamps also requires connecting devices, which are positioned between the successive fluorescent lamps inside the lighting fixture. A region with no lighting is thus formed at the connecting devices and the lighting of the light line becomes discontinuous.
The weight and minimum height of many transport vehicles are adjusted by different norms. This sets specific requirements for lighting fixtures to be used, since the lighting fixtures are usually mounted on the roof of a transport vehicle, such as a bus, train or an aeroplane. One way of implementing a continuous light line is to position the light sources to be used, such as fluorescent lamps, to slightly overlap one another and to position the connecting device outside the structure of the actual lighting fixture. In this case, the connecting device should have a separate space in the roof of the passenger cabin, which space can be provided by an embedding formed behind the frame of the lighting fixture, for instance. In this case, too, the available space is limited. In addition, the wiring between the light sources and the connecting device must be led through the frame of the lighting fixture behind the actual lighting fixture, which increases mounting and maintenance expenses. If the connecting device also has a high frequency, the required wiring can, be a significant electromagnetic interference source.
Another presented solution for positioning a connecting device in connection with a continuous light line is to make the structure of the lighting fixture so large that the connecting device can be positioned behind the light sources inside the lighting fixture. In this case, however, the lighting source becomes physically large and expensive, and such a big lighting fixture cannot be placed reasonably in the roof of a passenger cabin of a transport vehicle. Such a solution is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,387,415.
Passenger cabins of transport vehicles also have night lighting, which is switched on when the passengers are sleeping. In case of night lighting, the intensity of the lighting is low to provide favourable sleeping conditions and to ensure that the driver of the vehicle has an unrestricted view to the outside. The night lighting should, however, be intense enough to allow passengers to move in the passenger cabin, if necessary. In most cases, the night lighting is provided by separate small incandescent lamps, which are positioned inside the general lighting fixture and which can be switched on independently of the general lighting fixture.